Stapling device



Nov. 2, 1937. H. c. s'rocKEl.

` STAPLING DEVICE Filed Aug. 15, 1935 KMM. kwa

Patented Nov. 2, 1937 UNiTED STATES PATENT OFFICE sTAPmNG nnvrcr:

Hans C. Stockel, Chicago, Ill., assignor to Bercules Tool 8.',Manufacturing Co., Chicago, lll., a corporation of Illinois ApplicationAugust 15, 1935, Serial No. `36,280

14 Claims.

tion, greatly facilitating the manufacture and particularly the assemblyof such a device.

Another object is to provide a stapling device having a novel andimproved construction forming a guide passage, through which the staplesare ejected, supporting the intermediate portion of the staples duringejection to prevent buckling, but yieldable to prevent jamming andclogging of the passage.

A more particular object is to provide a stapling device having an armand a housing for the staple driving mechanism mounted on the arm andforming therewith a passage, through which the staples are ejected,shaped to support the intermediate-portion of a staple during itsmovement through the passage, the housing being mounted on the arm foryieldable movement longitudinally thereof and for bodily removaltherefrom.

A further object is to provide a stapling device ffl having a yieldablymounted and bodily remov- LLTI able housing for the staple drivingmechanism and means for relieving the tension on the housing tofacilitate removal thereof.

Yet a further object is to provide a stapling device having stapledriving mechanism and an anvil, bearing means for bending the legs ofthe staples inwardly and separate means for bending the legs of thestaples outwardly, rotatably mounted to position one or the other ofsaid means in operative position with respect to the staple drivingmechanism.

Other objects and advantages will become apparent from the followingdetailed description taken in connection with the laccompanying drawingin which: l

Fig. l is a vertical, longitudinal sectional view of a stapling deviceembodying the features of the invention.

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary plan view of the arm of the stapling devicelooking at the bottom thereof.

, Fig. 2a is an end view of the arm with the housing removed.

Fig. 3 is a 4reduced side elevational view of the housing detached.

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary plan view'of the anvil,y

While the invention is susceptible of various modifications andalternative constructions, it is shown herein and will be describedhereinafter in a preferred embodiment. However, it is not intended thatthe invention is to be limited thereby to the specific constructiondisclosed, but it is intended to cover all modifications and alternativeconstructions falling within the spirit and scope of the invention asdefined by the appended claims.

In the exemplary embodiment of the invention illustrated in the drawing,the stapling device comprises generally an elongated base 5 havingpivotally mounted thereon at its rear end a longitudinally extending arm6. At its forward end the arm 6 carries a casing generally designated -7housing staple-driving mechanism, while mounted on the base forcooperation with the staple driving mechanism is an anvil d.

The base 5 'preferably is a cast member and at 20 its forward end isformed with a recess 9 in which is received the disk-like anvil 8 withwhich the' staple-driving mechanism cooperates to clinch the staples. Inthe present instance, the anvil 8 is adapted to bend the legs of thestaples inwardly toward one another or outwardly away from one another,and to that end is' formed in its upper surface with an integral grooveIIl and with divided grooves II and II formed in well known manner tobend the legs of a staple inwardly and outwardly respectively. `Theanvil is rotatably secured in the recess by means of a single rivet I2which projects through the base and also secures to the under sidethereof a pad I3 of resilient material such as rubber. The anvil isformed with a finger I4 projecting from the recess by means of which theanvil is rotated from the position shown in Fig. 4, in which theintegral groove Ill is in operative position for bending the legs of thestaple inwardly, to the opposite extreme position in which the dividedgrooves II and I I are in operative position to bend the legs of astaple outwardly. The finger I6 carries a nub I5 adapted to engage inpockets I6 formed in the base to secure the anvil in its operativepositions, the resilient pad I3 providing the yielding force holding thenub in the pockets IB. A second pad II similar to the pad I3 is securedby a rivet I8 at the rear end ofthe base to coop-- erate with the pad I3in preventing slipping of the stapling device and in preventing thesurface of the piece of furniture on which the device is placed frombeing marred.

At its rear end the base 5 has cast integrally therewith a pair ofupstanding anges 24 be- 55 tween and on which the arm 6 is supported.Herein the arm 6 is composed of two channel shaped members 25 and 26with the member 26 smaller than the member 25 and placed within fthemember 25 to providean inverted U-shaped channel extendinglongitudinally of the arm for storing a supply of staples 21. Aplurality of screws 28 spaced longitudinally of thearm secure thechannel members together while shims '10 23 interposed between thechannel members ln- I sure uniform spacing thereof. The arm-is disposedbetween the anges 24 and is pivotally mounted on a bolt 30 extendingthrough the --ilanges and the channel members forming the arm. Theforward end of the arm 6 is closed by a plate 3l slotted as at 32 (seeFig. 2a) .to provide an opening for the U-shaped channel in the arm 6and having a rearward extension 33 secured by a screw 34 to an oiset '35in the channel member 25 whereby the plate is retained in position. The

screw 34 is accessible through an aperture 34' ink restraining member 31extends loosely through a slot 38 in the base 5to permit downwardmovement of the arm and is formed with a second leg 39 adapted to engagethe base to limit the extension of the spring 36. A rivet 40 provides aseat for the lower end of the spring 36 while the upper end seats on abead 4I formed on the upper ieg of the member 31.

The casing 1 housingthe staple-driving or ejecting mechanism is, in thepresent instance, composed of two side plates 42 having laterallyprojecting flanges 43 and 44 forming front and rear end walls of thecasing. The plates 42 are secured together by means of screws 45threaded into a transverse brace 46, a' bolt 41, and an annular cap 48.When the casing is in position on the arm 6, the side plates 42 extenddownwardly to a point flush with the lower edges of -the channel member25 so thatl the. flanges 43 cooperate with the plate 3l to complete thetransverse passage, intersecting the channel formed in the arm, throughwhich the staples are ejected. Secured to the interior of each sideplate is a bracket 49.

.Staples are ejected through the transverse passage by means of aplunger blade 50 riveted to a plunger 5| reciprocably mounted in thecasing 1 and projecting therefrom through the cap 46. The plunger 5I isformed at its upper end with a knob 62 by means of which an operator mayforce .the plunger into the casing against the action of a compressionspring 53, bearing at its upper end against the knob 52 and at its lowerend against the brace 46. Pins 55 and 56 secured respectively in theknob 52 and the brace 46 project into the end coils of the spring 53 tomain- .tain the same properly seated. Staples in` the arm 6 are urgedoutwardly of the forward end of the channel into the transverse passagefor ejection by the plunger blade 50 by a slide 51 positioned in the armrearwardly of the supply of staples 21.` The slide is provided with aknob 66 projecting through a slot 59 formed in the upper surface of thechannel member 25 and is detachably engaged with a resilient tape 66coiled and mounted Within the casing 1 on the bolt-41 squared forengagement with the brackets 49 to prevent rotation of the bolt.

Preferably a full stroke mechanism is associated with the staple drivingmechanism .to insure that each staple is completely ejected in order toprevent jamming or clogging by attempted ejection of a second staplebefore complete ejection of the previous staple. In the presentinstance, this mechanism is vin the nature of a two-way pawl and ratchetcomprising a ratchet segment 65 the teeth of which have a uniform slopeon both sides and which is cut away at .its ends to an extent greaterthan the depth of any tooth. Cooperating with the toothed segment y66 isa pawl 66 pivotally mounted at 61 on one of the brackets 49. A tensionspring 68 tends to maintain the pawl 66 perpendicular to the path ofmovement of the segment 65 but the length of the pawl from its pivot 61to its operative end is greater than the perpendicular. distance fromthe segment 65 to the pivot point 61. Thus when the plunger 5| is forceddownwardly the pawl 66 is rocked slightly in a counterclockwisedirection by the teeth of the segment 654 and thusserves to prevent areturn movement of the plunger until the plunger has been depressed farenough for the uppermost tooth to pass beyond the pawl 66, permittingreturn thereof to normal position perpendicular to the segment. Upon'the return stroke of the plunger, the pawl 66 is rocked in a clockwisedirection and thus prevents depression of the plunger until it h`asmoved outwardly to an extent such that the lowermost tooth passes thepawl 66 and thus again permits its return to normal position. Thus thefull stroke mechanism compels each downward stroke of the plunger bladeto be a coin-A plete stroke ejecting the staple, and prevents a partialstroke followed by return of the blade to a position preparatory toejection of a second staple which would jam the device.

In stapling devices of this character, diiculty is experienced inforcing the staples through tough, fibrous objects because of thetendency of the staples to crimp and particularly because of thetendency of the intermediate horizontal portion of the staples tobuckle. It was found that, to avoid such crimping and buckling of thestaples, not only must the legs of the staple be guided but that inaddition the intermediate portion of the staple must be supported. Tothat end the lower ends of the anges 43 opposite the plate 3l are bentinwardly so that the transverse passage tapers from its inner to itsouter end as seen in Fig. l, and so that the inner face of the wallformed by the flanges 43 is convex as seen in Fig. 2, resulting in apassage narrower along its center line than at its edges. The width ofthe passage at the center line, i. e., at the joint of the anges, overthe major portion of its length is less than the diameter of the wireforming the staples. Thus with this construction the legs of a staplemoving through the passage are adequately guided and supported while inaddition the intermediate portion of a staple is supported withincreasing force to the very point of its ejection from the passage.

In order to facilitate manufacture and assembly of the stapling device,to provide a guide passage of the character above-described which isyieldable to permit the passage of a staple therethrough and to preventjamming and clogging, and to provide for ready access to the passage forcleaning should it become obstructed, the casing 1 is herein mounted foryieldable movement longitudinally of the arm 6 and for bodily removaltherefrom. To that end the arm is provided with a pair of oppositelydisposed stationary rivets 10 the heads of which are spaced from lthechannel member 25 a distance substantially equal to the thickness of theside plates 42. Extending 'through longitudinal Aslots 1| in the arm 6for limited movement longitudinally thereof are a pair of oppositelydisposed screws 12 threaded vinto a bar 13. The heads of the screws likethe heads of the rivets 18, are spaced from the channel member 25 adistance approximately equal to the thickness of the side plates 42.Cooperating with the rivets 18 and screws 12 are oppositely directedbayonet slots 14 and 15 formed in the side plates 42 of the casing 1 bymeans of which the casing is detach,- ably secured on the arm 8. Theslots 14, as best seen in Fig. 3, have a more pronounced horizontalportion than do the slots 15 and thus permit of a limited movement ofthe casing longitudinally of the arm and relative to the rivets 18 topermit passage of a staple through the transverse passage. The casing,however, is urged onto the arm by means of a tension spring 16 at oneend engaging the bar 13 and at the other end anchored to a cross bolt11.

Means is provided herein for reducing the effective tension of thespring 16 on the casing 1 in order to facilitate removal of the casing.To that endy there is longitudinally slidable within the channel member26 a channel shaped member 18 cut away at 19 to accommodate the bolt 11and at 88 to accommodate the retaining member 31. The forward end of themember 18 abuts the cross bar 13 while the' rear end abuts the edge of abracket-like lever 8| pivotally mounted on the bolt 38 supporting thearm 6. In the normal position of the lever 8| shown in Fig. 1, thespring 15 is free to move the casing 1 rearwardly to the extentpermitted by the en gagement of the tcasing with the forward end of thearm 6. However, when the lever 8| is pivoted to the position shown indotted outline, the upper edge thereof cams the member 18 forwardly, asshown, which in turn shifts they cross bars 13 forwardly to relieve thetension of the spring 16 on the casing 1. At its rear end the member 18preferably carries a notch 82 in which the edge of the lever engages tobe retained in position camming the member 18 forwardly. With the bar'13shifted forwardly, the casing is readily removed by sliding it forwardlyuntil the vertical portions of the slots 14 register with the rivets 18.The forward end of the casing is then pivoted upwardly until the loweredge of the front end wall clears the top of the plate 3|. A slightrearward movement then diseng gages the slots 15 from the screws 12. Inreplacing the casing the steps are reversed with the slots 15 engagedrst.

It is believed apparent from the foregoing that because of the two-partconstruction of the casing 1 and the ready attachment of the casing toor removal from the arm. 1, manufacture and particularly assembly of thestapling device is greatly facilitated. In addition the casing isconstructed and mounted to provide with the arm a yieldabl passage toprevent jamming and clogging which at the same time provides for thesupport of the intermediate portion of a staple.

I claim as my invention:

1. In a stapling device an arm providing a channel extendinglongitudinally thereof for storing a supply of staples, staple ejectingmechanism, and a casing housing the mechanism and forming with the arm apassage through which 4on the forward end of said arm and formingtherewith a passage through which staples are ejected, means housedwithin the casing operable to eject a staple through the passage,downwardly opening oppositely extending bayonet slots formed in eachside of said casing, means formed on the arm cooperating with saidbayonet slots removably to secure said casing and to permit movementthereof longitudinally of the arm, and a tension spring urging saidcasing longitudinally in a direction rearwardly of the arm.

4. A stapling device comprising, in combination, an elongated basehaving staple clinching means mounted on the forward end thereof, a

Ilongitudinally extending arm pivotally mounted on the rear end of thebase providing a channel extending longitudinally of the arm for storinga supply of staples, means for yieldably securing a casing on theforward end of said arm, said casy ing forming with said arm atransverse passage through which staples are ejected, a plungerreciprocable insaid casing, a plunger blade carrled by said plunger andoperable to force a staple through the passage, and means for urging thesupply of staples toward the passage, said casing and the operatingmechanism housed therein being disengageable for removal therefrom by asequence of longitudinal and upward movements.

5. In a stapling device, an arm providing a channel extendinglongitudinally thereof for storing a supply of staples, a casingsupported on the forward end of said arm and forming thereywith atransverse passage through which staples are ejected, a plungerreciprocable in said casing and projecting through the top thereof foractuation, a plunger blade carried by said plunger and operable to forcea staple through said passage, a compression spring bearing at one endagainst said plunger and at the other end against said casing, andyieldable cooperating means on said arm and said casing having aresilient element for removably securing the casing on the arm, saidcooperating means being separable by a succession of to-and-fromovements of the casing against the force of said resilient element.

6. A stapling device comprising, in combina tion, an elongated basehaving' staple clinching means mounted on the forward end thereof, anarm pivotally mounted on the rear end of the base providing a channelextending longitudinally of the arm for storing a supply of staples, acasing supported on,the forward end of said arm and forming therewith atransverse passage, intersecting the supply channel, through whichprojecting laterally from said arm near the forward end thereof,oppositely disposed screws projecting laterally from the arm and'mountedfor limited movement longitudinally thereofydownwardly opening,forwardly extending bayonet slots formed in said casing'for cooperationwith said rivets and downwardly opening rearwardly extending bayonetslots for cooperating with said vscrews for mounting said casingon saidarm for yieldable movement longitudinally thereof and for bodilyremoval, and a tension spring anchored Yai: one end in said-arm and atthe other end operatively associated withsaid' screws to resist movementof the casinglongitudinally of! of the end of said arm.

'7.In a stapling device, an arm providing a channelextendinglongitudinally of the arm for storing asupply of staples, a casingmounted on the end of said arm for yieldable movement 1ongitudinallythereof and for bodily removal therefrom', staple ejecting mechanismhousedin said casing, and means for relieving the tensionon said casingto facilitate removal thereof.

8. In a -stapling device, an arm providing a channel extendinglongitudinally thereof for storing a supply of staples, a casing mountedon the forward end of said arm for.yieldable movement longitudinallythereof and for bodily removal therefrom, said casingforming with thearm a transverse passage through which the staples are ejected, stapleejecting mechanism housed in said casing, a spring urging said casinglongitudinally onto said arm, and a. lever for relieving the tension ofsaid spring on said casing to facilitate removal thereof.

9. In a stapling device, an arm providing a channel extendinglongitudinally thereof for storing a supply of staples, a casing mountedon the forward end of said arm and forming therewith a. transversepassage through which the `staples are ejected, staple electingmechanism housed in said casing; oppositely ,disposed laterallyprojecting rivets fixed in said arm near the forward endl thereof. alongitudinally movable member projecting laterally from opposite sidesof said arm, bayonet slots formed in said casing for cooperation withsaid rivets and said member removably and longitudinally movably tosecure said casing, a. tension spring anchored at one end in said armand at the other end engaging said member to urge said casinglongitudinally onto Cil the arm, a channel member slidable in said armand at one end abutting said movable member,

and a lever carried by said arm and operable to cam said channel memberforwardly of the arm to shift vsaid longitudinally movable member andthereby relieve the tension of the spring on said casing to facilitateremoval thereof.

10. In a stapling device an arm providing a channel extendinglongitudinally thereof for storing a supply of staples, staple electingmechanism, and a casing housing the mechanism and forming with the arman outwardly tapering transverse passage narrower along its longitudinalcenter line lthan along its edges to support the intermediate portion ofthe staple against buckling, said casing being mounted on said arm foryieldable movement longitudinally thereof and for bodily removal.

11. In a stapling device an arm providing a channel extendinglongitudinally thereof for storing a Supply of staples, staple ejectingmechanism, a casing mounted on the arm housing said ejecting mechanism,the lower end of the front end wall of said casing being bent inwardlytoward said arm to form therewith an outwardly tapering passage forsupporting the intermediate portion ofa staple ejected through thepassage, and cooperating means -on said arm and said casing .removablysecuring said casing for yieldable movement longitudinally thereof.

12. In a stapling device an arm providing a channel extendinglongitudinally thereof for storing a supply of staples, a casing adaptedto be mounted on the forward end of said arm comprislng apair of sideplates having inwardly projecting flanges forming the front and rearwalls of said casing, the front flanges forming with the end of said arma transverse passage through which staples are ejected and being bentinwardly to make the passage outwardly tapering and with a convex wallto support the intermediate portion of a staple, staple ejectingmechanism housed in said casing, cooperating means on said arm and said'housing securing said housing,for limited movement longitudinally ofsaid arm and for bodily removal therefrom, and a spring urging saidhousing longitudinally onto said arm.

13. A stapling device comprising, in combination, an elongated base,pads of resilient material disposed below said base at the opposite endsthereof, a single rivet securing each of said pads, an arm pivotallymountedon said base at the rear end thereof and providing a channel forstoring a supply of staples, a casing mounted on said arm, mechanismhoused in saidcasing for ejecting the staples, a passage through whichthe staples are ejected extending transversely of said arm andintersecting said supply channel, and a. disk-like anvil rotatablymounted on said base below said casing and having separate means formedtherein for bending the legs of a staple toward or away from oneanother, said means being selectively positionable in operative relationwith respect to the ejecting mechanism by rotation of said anvil,

and said anvil being secured by and rotatable about the rivet securingthe pad at the forward end of the base.

14. A stapling device comprising, in combinathe legs of a staple indifferent directions, said l means being selectively positionable inoperative relation with respect to the ejecting mechanism by rotation ofsaid anvil, and said anvil be- -ing secured by and rotatable about therivet at the anvil end of said base.

HANS C. STOCKEL.

